Sometimes random thoughts on food and wine and the pleasures they provide.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

What a Weekend!

Our fabulous 25th wedding anniversary celebration has come and gone. It was a wonderful event that was months in planning. We chose an 80’s theme to celebrate the decade of our wedding. I tend to get carried away with themes, which is one of the reasons for all the frenzy of planning activities. The tables and decorations were black and white polka dots with accents of neon colors. More than 65 friends and family members of all ages joined us to celebrate. They came dressed in many creative interpretations of 80’s attire including Return of the Jedi characters, a Robert Palmer backup singer, many Cyndi Laupers, Miami Vice and lots of jazzercise wear, just to mention a few. My son says my costume was a cop-out, but I dressed as a bride since getting married was what I was doing in 1985. Larry dressed as Indiana Jones. And he's decided to keep the beard, at least for now!

Usually I host our parties at home and we do the cooking, but this time we decided to go all out and held the party at La Honda Winery where we are wine club members. I also hired a caterer. This was my first experience with a caterer and it was a delightful one. John Silva at CulinaryEye Catering seemed to be able to read my mind. The food was excellent and he designed a unique table setting for the 80’s theme. Even the servers got involved in the fun by adding some 80’s spice to their attire.

The evening was filled with fun and games such as 80’s karaoke, vintage video games, a costume contest and a quiz to see how much people knew about us from 25 years ago. My son gave a humorous and touching toast in celebration of our 25 years. A few tears were shed when he related that I have often asked him what he will do differently as a parent and now that he has a newborn son his answer is “Nothing.” The choice of sparkling cider or La Honda’s 2005 Napa Valley Viognier (multiple silver awards) for the toast was a fitting end for the evening.

It was wonderful to gather so many of our friends together for the party. And then we had the rest of the weekend with my son and his wife, his in-laws and our new grandson. We continued to eat and drink the leftover food and wine and just enjoy being together. We especially love just watching six-week old Isaac changing every day. As his grandparents, we are assured of a lifetime of entertainment. What a weekend!